The moonlight grew brighter, casting a sharp outline around his features. Strands of hair fell across his forehead, their faint red tips hinting at this man's extraordinary status.
At that moment, he was leaning against her shoulder, this handsome man tightly embracing her from behind, leaving her heart in turmoil and making her unwilling to break free.
In that moment, she was captivated by him.
"What are you looking at, dear?" Luo's eyes slowly opened. His dark grey eyes narrowed, a mischievous smile curving his lips.
He was delighted by her earlier distraction. What a shy girl, unable to express her subtle emotions. But he liked that—her timid shyness, yet her proud defence of her dignity.
Ivina's expression was panicked. What had she been doing just now? She had been deeply attracted to a sleeping devil. She hurriedly turned her head away, trying to calm herself.
But the next second, her delicate chin was easily turned back by Luo's hand. He pressed his lips against hers, savouring the sweetness he had longed for.
'No...' She was being violated by this terrifying devil again. With a resolute heart, she bit down hard on the tongue that was demanding her sweetness.
'...'
Luo released her, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth. Blue, pure and transparent blue.
He looked at her in confusion, his eyes deep and inscrutable.
"You insolent man. I will report this to the king and have you punished severely." Turning away, Ivina exaggerated her voice, feeling frustrated that she had just acted like a petty tyrant. Perhaps, compared to the man in front of her, she was more like a vampire.
In front of anyone else, she was always shy and timid. But for some reason, whenever she encountered him, she learned to shout loudly, to threaten! Even to bargain! Yet all of this was useless. She understood that in the embrace he offered, threats and shouting were like unreasonable tantrums. Or like the whining of a little woman.
Thinking of this, Ivina took a few steps back in fear.
The man before her was sometimes gentle, sometimes brutal, sometimes seductive... But she didn't care about any of that. As long as she fulfilled the contract, she could leave this place. From then on, the vampire's realm would be nothing more than a terrifying nightmare in her long life.
'Ivina...' Lo reached out, longing to embrace her. He wanted to prove his ownership of that fragile body at every moment.
'I am not Ivina. I am Gra Vistata."
His hand hovered in mid-air, halted by that cold, firm declaration.
"I only remember the name you said when we first met. I-vi-na…" His hazy eyes sharpened, locking onto her watery gaze.
She panicked and looked away.
"That was just something I made up. Did you really believe it?"
"I like the name 'Ivina.' It's beautiful."
"You still don't believe me. Let me show you…" She raised her hand in agony, revealing a bright red mark and a blue rune on her snow-white skin. Perhaps from now on, no one would ever call her by her real name again. Niditara wouldn't, and neither would the man before her.
"Abandon the name 'Ivina.' From now on, you are Gra Vistata."
Ivina winced in pain, a subtle expression fleeting across her face, easily noticed by the observant man.
"But I know you like it when I call you that—Ivina. Whether it's 'my beloved Ivina,' 'my dear Ivina,' or 'my Ivina.'"
"Enough! Enough! I am Gra Visata!" His blatant displays of affection annoyed her. Why did this man always manage to drive her to the brink of madness, revealing her true, unyielding nature?
Yes, she wasn't weak, but it was because her mother had been so cold to her, making her feel abandoned from a young age. So she had to be good, obedient, submissive, and humble. Unable to see her father in heaven, she at least wanted to stay by her beautiful mother's side, even if she couldn't receive any love.
The hands she had pressed against her ears were grasped. With a slight effort, he pressed her tightly against the wall.
"Damn it! The Visata surname is of such a lowly lineage. Do not mention it in front of anyone else; it enrages me! If it weren't for the fact that you are of a different race, I would have already sentenced you to death." Luo's eyes flashed with coldness, and his words were like frozen blades.
Ivina noticed that the man before her was as arrogant as a king, a true ruler. But it was impossible; his eyes were grey, and he did not have the sharp teeth of a vampire.
Who was he?
Looking at her terrified face, he suddenly realised the tone of his voice. His expression softened; he did not want to scare her.
He gently kissed her forehead, her nose, and her lips, then tenderly parted her rose-coloured lips.
This was a long, passionate embrace, tinged with a hint of punishment.
Ivina opened her dazed eyes, unable to suppress her shyness.
But what followed was a sharp pain in her arm.
'Ah...' Breaking free from his grip, she suddenly noticed the mark.